Design Tools & Tips

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

One of the most important, if not the most important, rooms to design in your home is your kitchen. It truly is the “heart” of your home where you spend the majority of your time with friends and family. A well designed kitchen is one that reflects the homeowner’s individual taste, personality & lifestyle and well chosen, quality cabinetry is a major component of resale value in a home. The “recoup” costs on a kitchen and/or bath project, according to the “Cost vs. Value” report (2008) was between 74.6%-79.5%.

Founders Kitchen & Bath is not a “mega store” that lacks personalized service or tailored designs and is not a custom shop that lacks availability and accessibility. We are the perfect combination of personalized attention, custom designs, prompt manufacturer lead times and trusted warranties. We sell quality MasterBrand Cabinetry which is a well known and well respected manufacturer in the cabinet industry. In addition to cabinetry, we have established relationships and accessibility to a wide variety of trade partners to offer you the best products available in our industry.

Here are some helpful articles to assist you in the first phase of your decision making process. These links are from NARI (the National Association of Remodelers in the Industry) and NKBA (the National Kitchen and Bath Association) which are two of the most reliable experts in our profession.

GET STARTED

At Founders Kitchen and Bath, you will have a dedicated designer that will personally work with you through out all phases of your project. All of our designers are experienced in working with various sized spaces and budgets. If you have a general idea of what your limitations are, that will give you a good starting point.

Our state of the art designer showroom allows you to “test drive” your design with our “Imagine It” displays. We use comprehensive CAD programs that deliver detailed plans, drawings, elevations and perspectives for our customers. Our designers will show you all of the tools that we have to help you “visualize” your new space.

Communication between you, your designer and other trades is a vital part of a smooth and successful renovation project. When remodeling, expect to be displaced in your kitchen for several weeks between tear out, installation, measuring and fabricating of new countertops and reinstalling new or old appliances. This is a perfect time to try those new restaurants you have wanted to try!

PREPARE FOR MEETING WITH YOUR DESIGNER

Have an idea of what kind of style you are looking for (contemporary/traditional/transitional)

Think of what kind of wood/material you desire

Make a list of what works and what doesn’t work in your current room – knowing what you don’t like and what doesn’t work is the key to creating a better more functional design

Bring in photos of your current kitchen/bath and any samples of your current or desired colored scheme

Clip pictures from magazines, bring photos and/or drawings of styles that interest you

Allow yourself some time during the design phase to explore all of your options to best suit your wants and needs – a successful design is one that is thoroughly thought and planned out

Keep in mind that the average lead time for most of our cabinet lines is 4-6 weeks from the time the order is placed

It is also very helpful to have a general idea of the appliances you will be wanting – many kitchens a designed around the appliancesNo detail should be ignored to ensure your true satisfaction. Please take advantage of these valuable tips through NARI (the National Association of Remodelers in the Industry) and the National Association of Realtors. They are professional and trusted sources in our industry.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

A:

Our cabinet lead times are the same for remodels as they are for new construction. Each project is different and there are many variables involved in doing any renovation to your home. It all depends on how much more you are reconstructing besides your cabinets. For more detailed information on what to expect, please visit the NARI or the NKBA website for more detailed information.

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The majority of our manufacturers’ lead times are 4-5 weeks from the time the order is placed until it is delivered. Time frames are usually dependent on the cabinet manufacturer, door style and door finish. When we receive your cabinets, a job can be installed in as little as a day or up to a week or more depending on the size of the kitchen and baths.

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The warranty on products depends on the manufacturer and usually ranges from 1-5 years. However, we like to extend our services to provide adjustments for all “original” owners for the life of their cabinets. Our designers can go over all of the various warranties on our products with you during your showroom visit.

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We provide a complimentary “Design Consultation” that includes a 30 minute showroom tour, synopsis of price points, initial job measurement and “ballpark” pricing. Our “Design Services” include a detailed job measurement; client needs assessment, initial layouts, elevations, perspectives and pricing estimate which are available for a custom design fee based on the scale of your project.

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Of course! We have a variety of different kinds of hardware for you to choose from. Please go to our RESIDENTIAL tab and look for “Hardware” under “Our Products” and it will link you to any of one of our hardware suppliers.

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Please see our “Same As Cash” payment programs for a great payment option. We also accept American Express. For standard payment terms, we request 50% upon placing your order and the remaining 50% due prior to installation.

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Every one of our customers is assigned a Sales/Design Consultant that will assist you from the conception to the completion of your project. Our experienced designers can help you select your countertops, hardware, accessories, appliances, tile, etc…or we can lead you in the direction of where to go to find what you need.

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No project is too small or too big and our goal is to work within “your” budget. We will be happy to advise you with a “ballpark” figure or if you wish to have your space measured, designed, drawn and detailed, we can do that for a customary design fee which is refundable if you place your order with us. Please refer to the “Before You Begin” tab to help answer some of your questions.

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Absolutely! We have many displays sampling a variety of countertop materials, tile designs and functional accessories. We provide complimentary literature on our various products. You may also go to our RESIDENTIAL tab and look under our “Our Trade Partners” tab to see the variety of manufacturers that we work with.